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Reel World Reality A ministry of the ChildCare Action Project: Christian Analysis of American Culture (CAP Ministry) A 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Christian Ministry. www.capalert.com/ Entertainment Media Analysis Report A service to His little ones through you in His name by His Word MAR2011.161  (2011), PG-13 [R-13*] (130.8min) The #1 Christian entertainment media analysis service on the Internet. We give you OBJECTIVE tools NO ONE ELSE CAN to help YOU make an informed decision for yourself whether a film is fit for your family. Over 1300 analyses for parents, grandparents, pastors, youth leaders and more. |
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(While the Scriptural references are certainly not subjective, my commentary may be and sometimes is somewhat subjective.)
 Production (US): Mimran Schur Pictures. Lions Gate Films, MSP, Solaris Entertainment, Filmtribe Production Distribution (US): Lions Gate Films Director(s): Gavin O'Connor Producer(s): Lisa Ellzey, John J. Kelly, Jamie Marshall, David Mimran, Greg O'Connor, Michael Paseornek, Jordan Schur, Anthony Tambakis Screenplay by: Gavin O'Connor, Anthony Tambakis, Cliff Dorfman Story: Gavin O'Connor, Cliff Dorfman Cinematography/Camera: Masanobu Takayanagi Music: Mark Isham Film Editing: Sean Albertson, Matt Chesse, John Gilroy, Aaron Marshall Casting: Randi Hiller Production Design: Dan Leigh Art Direction: James Donahue Viewed on Lions Gate Home Entertainment DVD Tommy Conlon (Tom Hardy) is a hero. And a deserter. He saved the lives of some drowning soldiers as he was on his way out of Iraq. He changed his name to Riordon, his mother's name, then appears on the doorstep of his father, Paddy Conlon (Nick Nolte) as he was "passing through." Paddy was not a good father for either Tommy or his brother Brendan (Joel Edgerton). Paddy was a drunk. He is now at the 1000th day sober but the scars of the past still cloud any chances of sincere forgiveness from his boys. Tommy just stopped by his dad's house to let his dad know he was going to go into fighting and wanted his dad to train him -- something Paddy was good at with a lot of experience. Paddy had trained Tommy from the age of five in wrestling and Tommy had become the state champion. Undefeated. Brendan, an ex-UFC fighter now a high school physics teacher with two beautiful daughters Rosie (Lexie Cowan) and Emily (Capri thomas) and devoted wife Tess (Jennifer Morrison), holds a deep grudge against his younger brother Tommy. But the bank holds more against Brendan than Tommy. Brendan is a couple months away from foreclosure on his Pennsylvania house. On his way to a moonlighting bouncer job Brendan fights one smoker to earn more money in two hours than he could in a month as the $9.00 per hour bouncer job. The smoker was in the parking lot of a strip club and although Brendan won, the school would not tolerate one of its teachers moonlighting at sleaze clubs and coming to school with fight marks on his face. So Brendan is suspended. Without pay. Now he has all the time in the world to fight for money. But Tess initially stands in the way. Both brothers are getting back into fighting. Tommy for philanthropy and Brendan by need. But no one who has not already seen or heard about this film would be able to predict the final scenes which I will not spoil. When a film can implant such detail in my mind that I can write a discussion like the one above from memory, it has to do a good job of telling its story. The writers and filmmakers have prepared a package with a very well written story that flows exceptionally well and contains all the pieces and parts necessary to enable the viewer to care about the characters. But it also contains enough of all the pieces and parts to make it R-13. The content of this film is R-equivalent in everything but Sexual Immorality and Murder/Suicide. And in the sexually immoral content it is only 4 points out of 12 above the R-equivalence threshold. In almost every sense this film is R-equivalent and truly earned its R-13 label. It even "feels" like a R. Following are brief discussions of the content per individual content investigation area. As always the Findings section of this report, the heart of the CAP Analysis Model, is the best source for discovering the full accounting of the content of this film. Wanton Violence/Crime (W) - 24 out of 100 Besides the crime of an active soldier deserting his unit, the only content applicable to this investigation area is boxing violence. A lot of it. And some of it is brutal. Sadistically brutal, the very property of violence that makes it "catching." In many verses, Proverb 16:29 in particular, God warns of this property of violence, that violence can lead one into a path that is not good. Hundreds of years after God warned us of violence, four professional public health agencies jointly plagiarized God's Word by warning that viewing violence, especially by the young, can, among other things, lead to real life violence and lead the viewer to believe that violence is an acceptable means of settling conflict. God has warned us of violence. Four professional public health agencies have warned us. But do we listen? Impudence/Hate (I) - 18 out of 100 Thirty-one times someone speaks profanity. [Col. 3:8, Eph. 4:29] One of them by a high school teen which, by example, invokes Luke 17:2. Massive tattoos are displayed by a number of characters. [Lev. 19:28] Both Tommy and Brendan are indeed disrespectful of their father. Each of them show hatred of their father and of each other. [Rom. 12:18] Sexual Immorality (S) - 59 out of 100 Except for nudity and intercourse, the sexually immoral content of this film is quite typical of PG-13s: dressing to maximize the female form and/or skin exposure; camera angle and/or pose to force the viewer on private parts; women as toys/ornaments; adults in underwear; anatomical references; more. [1 Thess. 4:1 - 7] Drugs/Alcohol (D) - 54 out of 100 Smoking. Drinking. Drunkenness. Abuse of prescription drugs. It is all there except possession and/or consumption of illegal drugs. This extent of the display and demonstration of alcoholic beverages (and smoking) is poison to the moral well-being of our youth who are more likely to emulate that which is displayed onscreen. A 2002 study by the American College of Physicians (ACP) revealed that adolescent exposure to drinking in and as entertainment undeniably leads to abuse of alcohol among underage viewers. The finding entitled Relation Between Parental Restrictions on Movies and Adolescent Use of Tobacco and Alcohol reports that of 4544 youths from grades 5 through 8 of fifteen Vermont and New Hampshire middle schools (90% of the youths were under fourteen years old) only 16% were completely restricted in their entertainment diets. Within the ACP study population, the prevalence of having tried alcohol without parental knowledge was There is nothing to say that viewing smoking in and as entertainment does not carry the same danger of influence as viewing drinking. Actually, the same matter of behavior influence applies to any behavior demonstrated in and as entertainment, including good behavior. Offense to God (O) - 26 out of 100 Eighteen times someone abuses God's name. Three of those times were with the four letter expletive. [Deut. 5:11] Abuse of His name is blasphemy and includes any use of His name other than with respect, reverence or responsible discussion and in praise and prayer, including that ever-popular three-syllable sentence with His name trailing it. So many people let His name slide off their tongues that so many others who see no visible consequences in abusing his name emulate what they hear. That invokes Romans 5:19. God will not hold guiltless anyone who uses His name in vain. Murder/Suicide (M) - 100 out of 100 There are no murders or suicides noted on the entire 130.8 minutes of the program. SCRIPTURAL APPLICATION(S) If needed to focus or fortify, applicable text is underlined or bracketed [ ] or bold. If you wish to have full context available, the Blue Letter Bible is a convenient source. If you use the Blue Letter Bible, a new window will open. Close it to return here or use "Window" in your browser's menu bar to alternate between the CAP page and the Blue Letter Bible page. CHAPTER/VERSE --> Children who see a lot of violence are more likely to view violence as an effective way of settling conflicts. Children exposed to violence are more likely to assume the acts of violence are acceptable behavior. --> Viewing violence can lead to emotional desensitization towards violence in real life. It can decease the likelihood that one will take action on behalf of a victim when violence occurs. --> Entertainment violence feeds a perception that the world is a violent and mean place. Viewing violence increases fear of becoming a victim of violence, with a resultant increase in self-protective behavior and a mistrust of others. --> Viewing violence may lead to real life violence. Children exposed to violent programming at a young age have a higher tendency for violent and aggressive behavior later in life than children who are not so exposed. Further, God speaks darkly of violence 56 times in the Old and New Testament of the KJV.] As always, it is best to refer to the Findings/Scoring section -- the heart of the CAP analysis model -- for the most complete assessment possible of this movie. |
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(The objective heart of the CAP Analysis Model, independent of and insulated from the Summary / Commentary section.)   Wanton Violence/Crime (W) - 24 out of 100 Impudence/Hate (I) - 18 out of 100 Sexual Immorality (S) - 59 out of 100 Drugs/Alcohol (D) - 54 out of 100 Offense to God (O) - 26 out of 100 Murder/Suicide (M) - 100 out of 100 |
| There are some in the entertainment industry who maintain that 1) violent programming is harmless because no studies exist that prove a connection between violent entertainment and aggressive behavior in children, and 2) young people know that television, movies, and video games are simply fantasy. Unfortunately, they are wrong on both accounts." And "Viewing violence may lead to real life violence." I applaud these associations for fortifying 1 Cor. 15:33. Read the rest of the story. From our years of study, I contend that other aberrant behaviors, attitudes, and expressions can be inserted in place of "violence" in that statement. Our Director - Child Psychology Support, a licensed psychologist and certified school psychologist concurs. For example, "Viewing arrogance against fair authority may lead to your kids defying you in real life." Or "Viewing sex may lead to sex in real life." Likewise and especially with impudence, hate and foul language. I further contend that any positive behavior can be inserted in place of "violence" with the same chance or likelihood of being a behavior template for the observer; of being incorporated into the behavior mechanics and/or coping skills of the observer. In choosing your entertainment, please consider carefully the "rest of the story" and our findings. |
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| For G rated Films with G equivalence: G PG equivalence: PG-G PG-13 equivalence: 13-G R equivalence: R-G< | For PG rated Films with G equivalence: G-PG PG equivalence: PG PG-13 equivalence: 13-PG R equivalence: R-PG | For PG-13 rated Films with G equivalence: G-13 PG equivalence: PG(13) PG-13 equivalence: PG-13 R equivalence: R-13 | For R rated Films with G equivalence: G-R PG equivalence: PG-R PG-13 equivalence: 13-R R equivalence: R | For NR rated Films with G equivalence: G-NR PG equivalence: PG-NR PG-13 equivalence: 13-NR R equivalence: R-NR |
